Repository of Personal Medical Information

You can now store your own medical records.

Accessing your medical information and health records, like nearly everything else, has become easier and more convenient through the use of computers and the Internet. It is now possible for you to store medical records for yourself and family members online with a PHR (Personal Health Record) program. Several such online sites are free, and most of them provide encryption of data to ensure security.

Input Information

Medical records can be stored online.

The simplest repository for personal medical information is a loose-leaf notebook with your information entered by hand. MyPHR.com suggests how to organize your information. However, Internet-based providers store information online in a secure document that is accessible to you, as well as your health care providers worldwide.

With the use of such online repositories as the Mayo Clinic's Health Manager, which uses Microsoft HealthVault, or Google Health, you can input information for yourself or every member of your family by filling out a simple questionnaire. You will need a username and password. Once started, it is easy to update the information on your profile.

You can create a profile and keep track of medical conditions, medications you are taking and their dosages and frequency, illnesses, surgeries and hospitalizations, procedures you have had, immunizations needed and obtained, allergies, lab tests and results, drug interactions and other information.

You can also schedule reminders of upcoming appointments for yourself and your family members.

Import Records

Some sites, such as Google.com/health, allow you to import medical records from certain hospitals, pharmacies and laboratories by linking accounts and transferring the information to your account. The MediConnect site charges fees for some services and requires users to fill out an online medical request form before it can contact doctors, hospitals and pharmacies for copies of your records. After that, it uploads those records to your account.

Guidance

While these sites do not take the place of personal consultations with your physician, you can obtain useful information and recommendations about your condition that are helpful and that also better prepare you for your doctor visit.

Tools

The Mayo site, for instance, contains tools for tracking blood pressure, cholesterol, and other conditions. The Google Health site checks for possible drug interactions and allergies. On some sites you can schedule appointment reminders and renew prescriptions online. The Google site also provides information for finding doctors in your area.

Doctor Visits

Take medical information with you to doctors' visits.

Save time by preparing ahead for your visits to your physician by filling out a personal online chart containing your concerns and questions you may want to ask the doctor, the medications you are taking, and your family history, then printing out the chart and taking it with you. The doctor can then add information to his own records. You can also share your health records with your family members and friends as well as your physicians. Using the Google Health site, for instance, your can print out your information on a wallet-sized card to be carried with you in case of emergencies.

Software

PHR software is also available for use on personal computers. Like the Internet-based programs, PHR software can be used to create a health history and provide data importation and sharing. Although in most cases, information can be downloaded and stored on CDs, DVDs, or flash drives, the medical information is not as easily accessible to others as is information stored on Internet-based repositories.

Security

In choosing an online PHR site, be sure that it offers security for your records. Your personal health records should be accessible only by you or your designated family members and caregivers or health care providers. Read the privacy statement carefully. For instance, the Mayo Clinic Health Manager privacy statement states, "All Personal Information that you enter through the Service is encrypted using Secure Socket Layer technology to help protect it while it is sent over the Internet." The privacy statement also warns, "It is, however, important that you understand that the choices you select in Microsoft HealthVault may allow other people, companies and applications to access your personal information that is stored in your HealthVault account."

References

• Mayo Clinic Health Manager
• Google: Google Health Tour
• MyMediconnect.net
• MyPHR.com